West Virginia University football coach Neal Brown says he lives in a bubble during football season. From Sunday until his radio show Thursday, he’ll be found at the Mountaineers football facility.
Most weeks, that’s a good idea. It’s smart to eliminate as much of the outside noise as possible in the quest to win football games. But then you have weeks like the one Brown just had, when your words create most of the outside noise, and it might be a good idea to pop that bubble you live in and get an idea of what’s happening in the outside world.
On Monday, Brown was asked if he had a message for the fans heading into a nationally televised home night game against nationally ranked Kansas State – considering WVU just lost a nationally televised home night game against nationally ranked Iowa State.
For context, here’s Brown’s full answer:
“I get that they want to win. But what I would say is, did they have a good time? Did they enjoy it? It was a pretty good atmosphere. I’m assuming they had a pretty good time tailgating, so if they’re in the deal for enjoyment then I would come back. I looked at the weather and it’s going to be nice again.
“I get they’re frustrated that we didn’t win. We’ve played a tough schedule. Everybody that’s beat us hasn’t lost. But that’s no excuse, that’s just the truth and the games in our league are going to come down to the fourth quarter and I don’t think this one on Saturday is going to be any different. We need them to help us. I do get their frustration.”
Take both paragraphs together, it’s not a great answer, but it’s an answer. Problem is, no one in America got past the first paragraph, which was akin to saying “Yeah, your girlfriend dumped you at prom, but wasn’t the punch delicious?”
Now if you’ve been living in your own bubble, here’s some of the aftermath from that response.
– Former WVU punter and ubiquitous sports personality Pat McAfee discussed it on his radio show, saying in part, “You win a game, it’s more fun, Neal!”
– His comments were criticized on ESPN’s “Around the Horn,” where panelist Jen Lada said they were “a really bad look.”
– Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi zinged Brown on social media, posting after a practice “Did we enjoy it? Nice weather?”
WVU wants in the national discussion, but not like this. And that was just part of it.
It got so that Brown needed to address the backlash on his Thursday night coach’s show admitting that it “wasn’t my best answer.”
“I hate losing,” he said. “Everyone who has been around me knows that. Every coach and player in our program knows that and agrees with that. If you want to criticize us for losing on Saturday, or a play in the game, or a recruiting decision, that’s fair. Scrutiny over this comment, I don’t know if it’s fair. I would urge everyone to listen to the interview. I was disappointed in the loss, it was a great atmosphere. Everything was set and we didn’t deliver and win the game.”
Fair or not, Brown invited that scrutiny with his words Monday. The response within WVU’s fanbase has been swung to both extremes. Brown backers said critics overreacted to comments that were no big deal. Brown detractors said it was an example of why Brown shouldn’t be WVU’s coach.
Both are wrong. The real answer lies in the middle.
What Brown said Monday was, at best, an inartful response to the question, but it wasn’t so bad that he deserves a pink slip for saying it.
That being said, WVU needs to win a couple of games very soon. Saturday’s game against Kansas State would be a good place to start.
Nothing shoos away boo-birds like progress. A nine-win 2023 season that included a bowl victory was progress. Beating a nationally ranked team in a nationally televised night home game the week after losing to a nationally ranked team in a nationally televised night home game is progress.
If WVU can’t beat Kansas State, you can bet your bottom dollar that the first thing the Mountaineers’ critics will mention is how nice the weather was. That would sting, and that’s a scenario that Brown brought on himself. Were his words taken out of context? Are the national pundits not looking at the entire response? It doesn’t matter. That gaffe gave them the opening.
The fear from the media side is that this ordeal could affect how Brown answers questions going forward. He has been refreshingly open and candid in weeks past. Does this make him keep his thoughts closer to the vest?
Regardless, this week’s controversies show that life in a bubble isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be. Say the wrong thing, and that bubble can burst pretty quickly.
BY DEREK REDD
